The Race to the Bottom
Bike couriers risk life and limb for unpredictable pay, little job security, and almost no workplace protection.
Jacques Bouchard* had only been a bike messenger for a month when he was hit by a car.
His knee was bloody and swollen, and it would be a month before the Montreal bike courier could go back to weaving through traffic at top speed. Even worse, as an independent contractor, Bouchard couldn’t get paid sick leave or have his hospital bills covered.
Such is the existence of the urban bike messenger — equal parts danger and precariousness.
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